While Twain was working in the mining camps in the Nevada/California region, the miners in his camp had hired an Indian (Native American) to do their laundry. The latter, having need of hot water, spied a disused and cook stove in a shed. He essayed to use it to heat his water. Unfortunately, someone had decided to store gunpowder in the stove. The resulting explosion pulverized the stove, shredded the shed, and sent one of the eyes whizzing past Twain to lodge itself in a nearby wooden post. As the smoke cleared and the dust settled, the nonplussed Indian stolidly observed, “Hmmph. Dam stove heap gone.” Twain accounted his observation as a masterpiece of understatement.
BasilBruce about 7 hours ago
Is that why it’s called a pilot light?
A# 466 28 minutes ago
Brings to mind a story in “Roughing IT.”
While Twain was working in the mining camps in the Nevada/California region, the miners in his camp had hired an Indian (Native American) to do their laundry. The latter, having need of hot water, spied a disused and cook stove in a shed. He essayed to use it to heat his water. Unfortunately, someone had decided to store gunpowder in the stove. The resulting explosion pulverized the stove, shredded the shed, and sent one of the eyes whizzing past Twain to lodge itself in a nearby wooden post. As the smoke cleared and the dust settled, the nonplussed Indian stolidly observed, “Hmmph. Dam stove heap gone.” Twain accounted his observation as a masterpiece of understatement.